A Barn Dance, June 17, with a mission, invites you to dance your ass off and defy cancer, war and all the other things that break our hearts every day but will not stop us from loving as hard as we can

A post shared by The Winds Of Change (@thewellnessalmanac) on Apr 19, 2017 at 5:08pm PDT

Well, word is out.

Coming up, the crew behind the Pemberton Refugee Resettlement Group will takeover instagram and introduce themselves and their mission.

But in the meantime, I wanted to let my friend Hillary Downing share what this is all about:

Refugees and brain cancer. Say what? What’s the common thread here? Perhaps a little explanation might be in order. Some of you have hopefully seen the posts on the Pemberton Refugee Resettlement Group’s Facebook site announcing an event to be held at the Pemberton Downtown Barn on Saturday, June 17th.

The PRRG is a group of local individuals and community organizations dedicated to raising funds to help bring a refugee family to live in our community. They’re motivated by the belief that we can offer help to at least one family in light of the devastating conditions faced by people around the world. The idea of holding an event to raise funds for the PRRG started to take shape a couple of months ago and I volunteered to help along with my daughter Riva Fisher. Some of you who know Riva may also know that in the last two months her health has deteriorated. In response, several members of PRRG without hesitation suggested funds from the fundraiser should be shared equally between PRRG and a fund of Riva’s choice to assist with brain cancer research.

It was a generous, thoughtful gesture, but as Media and Public Relations Coordinator for PRRG, how was I going to spin that complicated story. It’s a mess, I thought. And then some very astute and kind individuals set me straight. The two issues are not that different. It’s a matter of seeing people in difficult circumstances and stepping up to offer some kind of help. It’s why we live here and why I think this community can invite a family from somewhere across the world to share our abundance.

If you’re able to make it June 17th from 7-11, come out and celebrate this community with us.

Pemberton’s own DJ Rich-A will be spinning a special selection of old country classics especially chosen for a down home event at the barn with special guests Marble Canyon also performing. Mayor Mike Richman is working the BBQ and Coast Mt Brewing is providing the beer. Huge thanks to Pemberton Valley Supermarket and Sabre Rental for their generous support as well. This is a 19+ event. Tickets are $20 and are available at AC Petrol, Mt Currie Coffee and Pemberton Valley Supermarket. All proceeds will be shared between PRRG and the Gord Downie Fund for Brain Cancer Research.

For more information on PRRG please check out their website: www.prrg.ca.
Donations are welcome.

~ Hillary Downing

Save the date. And get your tickets. This will be a shindig you won’t want to miss.

We do what we can. And infuse it with love. What more is there to do with this life? Except dance your ass off.